FINAL: Tennessee Cements Itself As CBB Power, Texas Staggers
Expectations are great, but they don't hang championship banners.
That sentiment has been at the forefront of every Tennessee fan's mind for the past few weeks. The Volunteers were college basketball's No. 4 team riding a three-game winning streak, but the Kentucky loss lingered.
After losing to the Wildcats on their home court, Tennessee went back to the drawing board. Fans circled January 28 on their calendar, the fateful matchup against a top-ten Texas team.
Three games stood between Tennessee and Texas, but the Volunteers got through those drama free. They regained their previous national standing, but everyone wanted to see how they fared against a team believed to be on their level.
They answered the call. Once again, multiple contributors headline the effort, and it wasn't one superstar performance willing them to a victory. Olivier Nkamhoua and Zakai Zeigler blew the game open in the second half, but Josiah Jordan-James kept them competitive in the first few first-half minutes.
ESPN's Dick Vitale was enamored with Tennessee's unselfish culture. He repeatedly noted that everyone communicated well, shared the basketball, and wanted to play defense, a rarity in today's basketball world.
This victory means more than any other thus far. The Big 12/SEC Challenge created several headlines, with major powers losing to unranked squads in each conference.
However, Tennessee managed to separate itself on a day when others fell. Alabama, Iowa State, Auburn, TCU, and Miami all came away with unranked losses, while Tennessee got a top-ten win.
A January win doesn't guarantee anything. The thing that separates this Tennessee squad from previous ones is their ability to wipe their memory of the last game and prepare for the next one.
The Volunteers will likely receive several No. 1 votes in the next iteration of the AP Poll. It feels warranted, as the orange and white could have easily laid down and staggered after the Kentucky loss but stayed the course and fought through adversity.
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